Spicy Peanut Soba Noodles with Pork

World Cup 2014 is really cramping my blogging style. I know we are just in the first round but I just can’t seem to pull myself away from the matches to write or cook! I guess I never usually get the opportunity to watch so many because past matches have been played in the middle of the night. Even when we lived in Australia and South Africa was the host country we still had to get up to watch matches in the middle of the night. One early morning (about 4 am) we had made plans to watch an England match with our friends. We arrived at their home with about ten minutes to spare…and to find that they weren’t quite awake yet. The dad of the house answered the door in his underwear with his eyes barely open, until he realized who we were and what he was wearing! I’ve never seen someone go from sleepy eyed to wide awake so fast!

Luckily for this World Cup Brazil is in a decent time zone and I can watch during the day, fully clothed and wide awake I might add. Still, it does take up a lot of time and I find myself looking for quick, delicious dinner recipes that I can make in between matches. I wasn’t going to post this one as you can tell by the single picture (taken with my phone!) but the dish turned out so well that I really want to keep this recipe on rotation and I wanted to share it with you.

This is a delicious quick dinner once you have all the prep done. It can take some time to julienne those carrots, onions, and peppers but the result is worth it. Kid number one had football practice and this high carb and protein packed dinner was just what he needed to keep his motor running. We had quite a lot leftover as well which comes in handy when you have three teenagers in the house.

I don’t have one particular team I cheer for because of course there’s no way Canada will ever send a team to play in World Cup. I am most likely to root for the underdog of any match but I will especially root for England, Italy, Argentina, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, and the host country; Brazil. In fact I would be very happy if Brazil won in their home country (sorry Jo!).

Spicy Peanut Soba Noodles with Pork

Ingredients

Pork

1 large pork tenderloin; thinly sliced on bias

1 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp minced garlic

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1.Mix all into a bowl and let sit while you get everything else ready.

Sauce

1/2 cup boiling water

1/4 cup peanut butter

2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic

1 teaspoon bottled ground fresh ginger

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon chile paste with garlic (such as Sambal oelek)

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

2. Mix altogether and let sit while you prep the rest.

3. Stir fry the following together, then remove from pan and keep warm.

1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

1/2 an onion thinly sliced

1 large carrot; cut into matchsticks

4. Boil according to directions; then drain.

1 package soba noodles

5. Stir fry the pork until done. Add the vegetables and cooked noodles. Pour sauce over and stir gently until thickened.